There’s a pretty green lady peeking out of the corner of the living room.

This emerald beauty started out not-so-pretty. But like a true Cinderella story, her years of hard work paid off and she was rewarded with a breathtaking makeover and a home with people who love her.

She started off like this:

Just a nondescript, cream-colored dresser like many you see at garage sales and thrift stores. I thought the plank sides and farmhouse-y top were kind of unique though, so I decided I had nothing to lose by painting her.

After we filled the holes and gave her a light sanding, I had to decide on paint. I’ve been wanting to paint something green for AGES, so I chose Behr Paint and Primer in Pine Grove, a deep emerald/Kelly green. I applied it with a synthetic brush and a small foam roller. It took me three coats to get the coverage I wanted (pretty typical with highly pigmented latex paints). I then protected the paint with a couple coats of Polycrylic.

I chose brass pulls by Martha Stewart from HomeDepot.com. They are actually less shiny than they look online. I love them, and they are only $1.98 each! Super affordable.

Halfway through adding the hardware I decided the paint finish was a little too flat and one-dimensional. It needed more interest, more depth. I decided to add a glaze. Because I didn’t want to deal with smelly oil-based or wax glazes, I chose this craft antiquing glaze that is water-based and easy to clean up (Martha Stewart tintable glaze from Michaels). I mixed it with raw umber and burnt umber craft paints until it looked like a thick, rich, hot chocolate.

I applied the glaze with a foam brush and then left it to set for about 10 minutes. When it was tacky, I buffed it off.

I didn’t want my little dresser to look too “faux”, so I kept it light on the glaze, buffing most of it off. I just wanted to add a little dimension and depth to the paint color. As with makeup, a little bit goes a long way =). Here it is again, finished. I’ll probably want to add another layer of Polycrylic at some point to protect the glazed finish…when I get around to it…

I think the glaze gives it a lot more character. And we all know how important character is in every Cinderella story.

We wanted a more substantial piece of furniture to fill up that corner (we had a small round side table there before). And since it’s so close to the front door, it’s also a great place to store pool/swimming gear (goggles, floaties, sunscreen), extra flip-flops, umbrellas, etc…

It’s a little high to set a drink on but because we have the DIY sofa console table behind the sofa for drinks, it’s not a problem.

The dresser was free (a hand-me-down), so this makeover only cost us $10 for paint, and $18 for hardware, bringing the total to about $28!

I’m starting to get addicted to painting furniture. I might try chalk paint or milk paint next to get good adhesion without peeling. I have a few more pieces to paint so stay tuned! In the meantime, what do you think of this deep, rich green? Is it a color you would use in your home?

Love that! I just built a big rolling craft table for my crafting area and have been thinking about what color to paint it. I have some coralish/pink paint I really want to use, but am a big chicken about painting something so bright and bold. I guess I just have to put my big girl pants on and go for it. I mean, if it stinks I can repaint, right? Thanks for encouraging me to go bold!

Camilla, WOW, this dresser turned out great! I am in love with the color! The Behr Pine Grove looks SO good with the brass hardware, and I can’t believe what a good deal you found on those pulls. I initially thought they looked like Restoration Hardware pulls :). I’d love to feature this on my paint color blog, Involving Color. You wouldn’t have to do a thing, just let me know if you’re interested!

Love it!! stumbled on this post when I searched Google for “painted green furniture.” Trying to decide on a shade for an old buffet that holds everything in our living room 🙂 question about antiquing- did you paint all over with the foam brush or just kinda sporadically in spots? I’m nervous bc I’ve never tried it before but love that way it looks! Thanks 🙂